


Sunflowers

by remreader



Category: Iron Man (Movies), Marvel Cinematic Universe
Genre: F/M, Ficlet, Fluff
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-04-25
Updated: 2019-04-25
Packaged: 2020-01-31 18:51:04
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 475
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18597328
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/remreader/pseuds/remreader
Summary: Pepper brings Tony some of his favorite flowers.





	Sunflowers

**Author's Note:**

> RDJ said that he loves sunflowers during the Jimmy Kimmel interview for Endgame, so I decided they're Tony's favorite too :)
> 
> Originally posted on my [tumblr](https://newnewyorker93.tumblr.com/post/184422573176/sunflowers#notes).

“You got me…” Tony took a look at the neatly wrapped bouquet in Pepper’s hands, “you got me  _sunflowers_ ," he whispered in a quietly awed voice. “Pep, how did you…?”

“Know they’re your favorite?” Tony nodded, and Pepper grinned triumphantly, suspicions confirmed. “You’re not the only one who can make wildly brilliant intuitive leaps, Tony.” He still looked bewildered so she continued on, “you always slow down when we drive past those sunflower fields on the way to the compound. Not much, but anything that makes you ease up on that lead foot of yours must be important.”

Tony bristled a bit at that. “I do not have a  _lead foot_ , I just think that…” Pepper could tell that Tony was winding up for another long rambling rant about Sports Cars and Why Driving 40 Miles Over the Speed Limit is Good, Actually and she quickly cut him off, leaning in and kissing the words right out of his mouth. Tony started to pull her down into his lap but the cellophane wrapping of the bouquet started to crinkle where it was pressed between their bodies and Pepper jumped back before they could damage the flowers, looking amused at the dazed expression on Tony’s face when they broke apart.

“So.” Pepper was all business now, briskly dumping out one of the random jars of machinery parts scattered around the lab to put the flowers in while Tony was still shaking his head experimentally to get back into able-to-converse-in-complete-sentences mode. “Now that we’ve established who the real genius in this relationship is, I am curious, why sunflowers?”

"Right, um. So there was this abandoned lot near my apartment at M.I.T., you know, just full of garbage and junk? Real eyesore but there was this wild sunflower growing there, I mean I don’t even think there was  _dirt_  in this lot but the thing was  _massive_. Leaves as big as your head, real crazy stuff. I used to go look at it all the time. Just, sometimes when I needed…when I was upset about stuff. With Dad or whatever. I don’t really know why. Anyway I’ve liked sunflowers ever since. Yeah.” He shrugged and shifted in his chair, looking slightly nervously back up at Pepper.

Pepper studied Tony for a few moments, an odd look on her face, before finally coming to a realization, “It’s because it was  _you_.”

“Tall?” He teased, somewhat hopefully.

“ _No_.” she responded, fondly but emphatically, before continuing in a more serious, thoughtful tone. “No, Tony, it was a survivor. Tossed in a scrap heap where nothing else could grow but it found what it needed and it twisted to the sun and it  _thrived_.” She took his hand, tracing her fingers lovingly over the calluses and slowly fading white scars that covered his palm and fingertips. “And that’s beautiful.”


End file.
